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LAND USE IN THE VALLEY
Quarrying and the Millstone Industry
Quarrying in the Burbage area probably started over 2000 years ago when millstone grit was used to make rotary querns. These were the hand-held equivalents of the later millstones.
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Millstones
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The millstones were made at the quarry site and transported all over Britain and even abroad. Discarded millstones can still be seen at the quarry sites in the Burbage Valley and also at other quarries in the Peak District.
Land Ownership
Since 1928 the Burbage Valley has been owned by Sheffield City Council, who bought it from the Duke of Rutland, with the idea of building a reservoir in the area. Due to local opposition to this proposed reservoir, the project was cancelled but Sheffield Council continued to manage the land, which is now tenanted out to a local sheep farmer.
The rights to use the valley for grouse shooting and other sporting activities were leased out by the council until 1936. This limited public access to the land. After 1936 new paths were gradually opened up and public access was extended in to the valley. A new access agreement has recently been completed.
Farming
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Higger Tor
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It is likely that much of the area was once covered with trees. Bronze Age and Iron Age farmers cleared the trees to grow crops and centuries of sheep grazing have prevented their regrowth. The natural moorland is in fact a man-made environment.
Recreation
The closeness of the Burbage Valley to major towns has led to its popularity with a wide range of people. The many tracks and paths through the valley have encouraged walkers into the area and rock climbers can be seen on many days throughout the year taking advantage of the climbing routes available on Burbage Edge.
Another sport popular with many youth groups is that of weaseling and this involves scrambling around some of the large gritstone blocks on Higger Tor.
Management of the Moors
When the moors had shooting rights let out on them, they were specifically managed to encourage the grouse. This involved the burning of small patches of heather in rotation during the winter to encourage new growth. Recently, controlled burning has taken place to encourage regrowth of heather, creating habitats for wildlife and food for sheep. Uncontrolled summer fires can cause a lot of damage to vegetation and to creatures. An area devastated by fire in 1976 is still mainly bare peat and (where the peat has burnt away) bare gritstone.
Further management problems come from the erosion of footpaths by walkers and increasingly by mountain bikes. Footpaths around Higger Tor are being repaired and re-surfaced by the Peak District Rangers to keep erosion to a minimum.
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